Teaching with
Instructional
Software
• Q1) a) did you see any instructional software used in the
classroom during your prac experience? If yes,
explain the example of it and if it was effective.
b) what instructional software from the reading
would you implement into your classroom and why?
Give specific examples from the reading.
• Q2) Discuss the challenges and benefits as a teacher for
using instructional software in the classroom
• Q3) There are several constructivist views on the five
instructional software functions. Do you believe these
views to be true or do you believe that teachers play a
role in determining if a software is appropriate for the
needs of the students?
Our questions…
QUESTION 1:
a) did you see any instructional software used in the
classroom during your prac experience? If yes,
explain the example of it and if it was effective.
b) what instructional software from the reading would
you implement into your classroom and why?
Give specific examples from the reading.
QUESTION 2
Discuss the challenges and benefits as a
teacher for using instructional software in the
classroom.
Consider from an organisational perspective, as well as the
five functions and Integrated Learning Systems (ILSs)
• Availability of computers
• Teacher knowledge of the program, and how to use
it
• Choosing the right program with the right functions
• Meeting outcomes & preparing for testing
• Cost
• Educational References
Organisational
Challenges
Drill-and-practice
Exercises in which students work example
items, usually one at a time, and receive
feedback on their correctness
Benefits
• Immediate feedback
• Student motivation
• Saving teacher time
Challenges
• Perceived misuses
• Criticism by
constructivists
Tutorial
An entire instructional sequence similar to a
teacher’s classroom instruction on a topic
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Benefits
Branching tutorials allows for
progress reports
Incorporates drill and practice;
immediate feedback to students
Self-contained, self-paced unit of
instruction
Can allow students who struggle to
re-learn or re-visit a topic
Advanced students to move ahead
& learn something new
Provides schools with opportunities
to teach a topic where the teacher
is unavailable
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Challenges
Tutorials which require a lot of
reading
Criticism by constructivists
Lack of good products
Reflect only one instructional
approach
Simulation
A computerized model of a real or imagined system that is designed to
teach how the system works. Learners usually must choose tasks to do
and the order in which to do them. There are 2 types: those that teach
about something, and those that teach how to do something.
Challenges
Benefits
• Accuracy of models
• Compress time
• Misuse of simulations
• Slow down processes
• Get students involved
• Make experimentation safe
• Make the impossible possible
• Save money & other
resources
• Allow repetition with variables
• Allow observation of complex
processes
Instructional Games
Designed to increase motivation by adding game rules
and/or competition to learning activities
Benefits
• Motivation
Challenges
• Learning vs. fun
• Confusion of game
rules & real life
• Inefficient learning
Problem-solving
Designed especially for this purpose, may focus on fostering component
skills in, or approaches to general problem-solving ability, or it may
provide opportunities to practice solving various kinds of content area
problems.
Benefits
• Improved interest &
motivation
• Prevents inert knowledge
• Constructivist
Challenges
• Names vs. skills
• Software claims vs.
effectiveness
• Possible negative effects
• Transfer
Integrated Learning Systems
Systems that offer computer-based instruction & other resources to
support instruction, along with summary reports of student progress
through the instruction; all are provided through networked or online
sources. They offer a variety of instructional techniques in one place,
usually as a curriculum package complete with technical maintenance
and teacher training.
Benefits
Challenges
• Provides combination of the
• The cost
materials above, therefore
• Research on achievement
duplicates the benefits
• No predictability found in
• Networked or online
research
• Easy to use
• Concerns about the role of
• Frees the time up for
ILSs
teachers
• Teachers can personalize
instructional activities
Question 3
There are several constructivist views on the five
instructional software functions. Do you believe these
views to be true or do you believe that teachers play a
role in determining if a software is appropriate for the
needs of the students?
Constructivism is a theory of knowledge that
argues that human generate knowledge and
meaning from an interaction between their
experiences and their ideas. Learning is based
on students’ active participation in problem
solving and critical thinking in relation to an
activity which they find relevant and engaging.
Definition
For Example:
Drill & Practice
• Drill-and-practice software for many people is considered an outdated
approach to teaching. Many believe that if students are practising isolated
skills, the process contradicts the move for students to learn and use skills in
an integrated way. Specifically in relation to the trends in the new curriculum.
Tutorial
• Tutorials are criticized because they deliver directed instruction. This approach
may not allow students the chance to generate their own knowledge through
hands on experience. Students are simply told what to do and don’t have the
chance to explore within their own learning.
Constructivist Views of
the Five Functions
Do you believe the constructivist views
within the reading? Why/why not?
Do teachers play a role? Can you think of
an example?
What role do teachers
play?